Careful risk assessment and diligent emergency planning is required to minimise the risk of harm to workers or other personnel encountering gas cylinders at your worksite. This post provides an introduction of the emergency planning process for gas cylinder stores, based on the requirements of Section 6 of AS 4332 - The storage and handling of gases in cylinders.
If not handled or stored in the correct way, your gas cylinders may create an environment which leads to an emergency situation. Even the position in which you locate gas cylinders can affect the risk that these dangerous goods pose.
Some hazards related to Class 2 gases may include:
However, when planning for an emergency, it’s imperative to consider a range of factors including:
To fully control the risks associated with the gas cylinders, you first need to understand what gases are present in your business — and what hazards (and level of risk) they present to your organisation.
Emergency planning always begins with preventative measures.
You’ll conduct a thorough risk assessment which identifies the hazards presents at the workplace and the severity of dangerous incidents likely (or even possible) of occurring.
When gas cylinders are present at the workplace, you’ll be listing each and every cylinder on site, what it contains, where it is stored, and how it is handled.
Now with a list of possible dangerous incidents involving gas cylinders, you will begin introducing control measures to reduce the likelihood of those incidents occurring (or minimise the harm if they do).
Some known control measures for gas cylinder stores and handling areas include:
The way you store your cylinders contributes to safe workplace design. Wherever possible, locate gas cylinders outside. This will reduce the likelihood and impact of gas leaks, which can lead to emergency situations such as fires, asphyxiation, chemical reactions and other hazards.
Storemasta recommends that you store gas cylinders in a heavy duty gas bottle cage with bump rails, restraint bars and security chains.
The Australian Standard AS 4332 offers requirements about the design and construction of gas cylinder stores, as well as requirements on where to locate gas cylinders.
The requirements include storing gas cylinders:
Gas cylinder stores must be:
Avoid storing gas cylinders indoors, near incompatible substances, sources of heat and ignition sources.
Setting up first aid stations near your gas cylinder stores is essential.
The first aid stations must be in a clean area and contain all the equipment necessary to respond to a dangerous incident involving compressed gases and cylinders.
Depending on the types of gases used at the workplace, your first aid station may require:
Ensure your gas cylinder stores and handling areas have correct warning placards and precautionary signs.
These will include at a minimum:
DANGER: NO SMOKING, NO IGNITION SOURCES.
RESTRICTED AREA, AUTHORISED PERSONNEL ONLY
You’ll also need the relevant dangerous goods labels for each hazard class:
Gas cylinder and bottle stores must be marked with the relevant dangerous goods signage and hazard signage applicable to your Class 2 gases.
Depending on the size of the workplace — plus the amount and type of gases being used— your workplace design might also consider:
A detailed plan for combatting emergencies needs to be prepared in consultation with emergency services, gas suppliers, and relevant regulatory authorities.
The depth of your emergency plan will depend on several factors including:
REMEMBER: Your emergency plan should consider incidents including the release of gases, fire and explosion. It should be appropriate for the size and complexity of your operations, and be reviewed and updated on a regular basis to ensure efficacy.
Accompanying your emergency response plan, you’ll also require a manifest of hazardous chemicals.
Your manifest is a written summary of the hazardous chemicals (including cylinders types, quantities and locations) at the worksite.
The manifest is created specifically for emergency responders and the plan should be lodged (along with the Emergency Response Plan) with your emergency services provider.
The emergency response plan and the manifest of hazardous chemicals must be reviewed (at a minimum) and updated whenever:
IMPORTANT: Always check the WHS Regulation in your state and territory for full details on preparing your Manifest of Hazardous Chemicals.
Staff training is an essential requirement for gas cylinders and an important factor in emergency planning.
All personnel likely to be involved in an emergency need to be familiar with the contents of the Emergency Plan as well as understand their role when responding to a dangerous incident.
Depending on their job role, the training could include:
IMPORTANT: Staff training must be ongoing. Each staff member must also be supervised and monitored to ensure they are following safety instructions correctly.
For more detailed information about how to manage the risks and hazards associated with the gas cylinders, please download our free eBook Gas Cylinder Storage: Compliance and safety requirements. The eBook introduces the risk management and planning process by applying real examples of gas cylinder hazards and safety incidents to a tested methodology. Read it today and learn how to control the cylinder risks at your own workplace.